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Politics

by Mike Masnick

Wed, Nov 11th 2009 11:03am




Filed Under:
freedom of information, transparency


Feds Demand Over Half A Million Dollars To Fulfill A Freedom Of Information Act Request

from the well-that's-one-way-to-avoid-it dept

When President Obama took office, one of the very first things he did was declare that all government agencies should default towards openness in dealing with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. It looks like some are trying to sneak around that a bit. Wired has the story of an FOIA request where the government is demanding $522,886 in order to fulfill the request. This certainly gives off the appearances of pretending to be open while figuring out a nice way to toss up a huge roadblock. Oh, by the way, that single bill would just about equal the entire cost that the US gov't charged for all FOIA responses in 2008. Why so expensive? That's not particularly clear. Apparently, the guy filing the request even knows which file cabinets the information he needs is in, so it's not like the gov't has to go searching for it...

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  1.  
    icon
    Brendan (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 10:11am

    So, let's make it a big issue

    ... and git'r solved.

    Enough negative PR should push that request right through, I hope.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  2.  
    icon
    :Lobo Santo (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 11:11am

    Re: So, let's make it a big issue

    "Enough negative PR should push that request right through, I hope."

    ... thru to the CIA--and shortly thereafter a man with an icepick and incredibly thorough knowledge of explosives and poisons will drop by this guys house and have a nice little chat with him...

    *(For those of you who can't tell--that's some satire right there.)

    I'm glad this is getting a press time.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  3.  
    icon
    Nastybutler77 (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 11:22am

    What a surprise

    WHAT?!? Obama isn't following through on a campaign promise? Who would have thought?

    /sarcasm

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  4.  
    icon
    Rebel Freek (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 11:29am

    Re: What a surprise

    Obviously you did not have him serve as your senator...

    /more sarcasm...

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  5.  
    icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 11:48am

    Re: Re: What a surprise

    "Obviously you did not have him serve as your senator..."

    Are you shitting me? NO ONE remembers him serving as their Senator. He was in office for what...10 minutes? And for 9 of those minutes he was campaigning for his presidency....

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  6.  
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    Overcast (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:09pm

    You want info - PAY US - capiche?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  7.  
    icon
    tikkiggodd (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:13pm

    Re: Re: Re: What a surprise

    LOL so true... you'd think he served in Chicago for years the way they trumpet him around there.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  8.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:17pm

    FOIA says you have to make certain types of documents available. The act also says you can ask a reasonable price for reproduction of said material i.e. copy cost you can not charge for labor in assembling, the person also has the right to go to the facility and look at it there with no charge. Who knows what this person is asking for it could be millions of pages long.

     

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  9.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:17pm

    FOIA or PIA?

    Sounds like the Paid Information Act to me.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  10.  
    identicon
    seriously?, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:28pm

    Re: So, let's make it a big issue

    Sorry Brendan, I can't take anyone seriously that uses the word "git'r"

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  11.  
    identicon
    Captain Obvious, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 12:48pm

    So why hasn't a FOIA request been made for those telco lobbying records? Or has there been?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  12.  
    identicon
    zbeeblebrox, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:00pm

    So..what happens if someone were to file a FOIA request to find out why filing for FOIA requests are so expensive?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  13.  
    icon
    Dark Helmet (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:09pm

    Re:

    "So..what happens if someone were to file a FOIA request to find out why filing for FOIA requests are so expensive?"

    Hilary Clinton shoots you...in the wiener.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  14.  
    identicon
    zbeeblebrox, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:11pm

    So..what happens if someone were to file a FOIA request to find out why filing for FOIA requests are so expensive?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  15.  
    icon
    Shawn (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:35pm

    Re: Re:

    you owe me a cup of coffee and a new keyboard

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  16.  
    icon
    Nastybutler77 (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:35pm

    Re:

    There hasn't been just a FOIA request for the telco lobby records; there's a court order. Even that hasn't stopped the administration from stalling. I LOVE the new transparency! What a breath of fresh air! I can't stop using sarcasm and exclamation points!

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  17.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 1:46pm

    Re: Re:

    Hillary is a good shot too, just ask Bill.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  18.  
    identicon
    wnyght, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 2:02pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    there's a law suite for that

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  19.  
    identicon
    Maddog, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 2:52pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Bill is not, however, his errant shot nearly cost him his presidency.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  20.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 2:52pm

    Re:

    The act also says you can ask a reasonable price for reproduction of said material...

    And then it leaves it up to the agency's whim to decide what constitutes "reasonable".

    the person also has the right to go to the facility and look at it there with no charge.

    Citation, please.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  21.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 3:09pm

    If you listen real carefully, you can hear an anus tearing.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  22.  
    identicon
    Anonymouse, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 6:57pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Killary is a good shot.. Ask Vince Foster..

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  23.  
    icon
    harbingerofdoom (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 7:40pm

    ah... can you feel the change in the air? its such a breath of fresh air to have thrown off the oppressive shackles the previous administration had bound us in...



    ...wait...what?

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  24.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 11th, 2009 @ 9:00pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re:

    Err... No, it didn't. He finished his term. Nice try, though!

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  25.  
    icon
    ChadBroChill (profile), Nov 11th, 2009 @ 9:47pm

    Re: Re: Re:

    Better than Cheney I hope

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  26.  
    identicon
    cKarlGo, Nov 12th, 2009 @ 4:51am

    Obamapocrisy

    That pretty much says it all.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  27.  
    icon
    Overcast (profile), Nov 12th, 2009 @ 6:49am

    "So..what happens if someone were to file a FOIA request to find out why filing for FOIA requests are so expensive?"

    Hilary Clinton shoots you...in the wiener.

    She can...

    After all - dodge bullets in Iraq - I seen it on a video! ;)

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  28.  
    identicon
    NO!, Nov 12th, 2009 @ 7:43am

    Re: Re:

    In the government there's cost based accounting. That means if they ask for a half mil to fulfill the request, they better spend a half mil to fulfill the request, or they get their whole budget submission cut the next year.

    There are also exemptions for information which means it's not accessible via FOIA. If the information being requested is covered by an exemption, to invalidate the exemption it would have to go through legal review. And even for FOIA info most of the time it still has to go through the release office to be cleared for sensitive data.

    This sounds like 4 man years to deal with FOIA requests and that could easily be the case if the information is spread across 30 employees or if the info has an FOIA exemption on it.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  29.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 12th, 2009 @ 10:06am

    Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:

    Hence the word "nearly".

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  30.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 12th, 2009 @ 11:10am

    Re: Re: Re:

    In the government there's cost based accounting. That means if they ask for a half mil to fulfill the request, they better spend a half mil to fulfill the request,

    And you think that might somehow be a problem? If there's one thing the gov't is good at, it's spending money.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

  31.  
    identicon
    Anonymous Coward, Nov 12th, 2009 @ 4:32pm

    Re: Re: Re: Re:

    Like we say around my office: If we can't add value, we can at least add cost.

     

    [ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]


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